Wonder Dog

In one of our favorite new animated movies, "Up", the dogs have high-tech collars that allow them to say just what's on their mind ("Squirrel!"). Lately, we've been wishing that our nine year old black lab, Grete, had one of those collars.

By the fire chief's account, Grete was probably launched from our house by the explosion. A good samaritan and pet-lover driving by at just the right moment saw a charred dog running erratically through traffic, and followed her half a mile until she could coerce Grete into her car. The police suggested she take Grete to Westgate Pet Clinic.

Because Grete was a regular Westgate patient, the clinic had her records with Matt's cell phone number, and called him to let him know that Grete was safe. Oddly enough, Westgate was the first to notify Matt that something was wrong. Matt was in Amsterdam on business, and learned of the accident via Westgate within minutes of when I received the news.

Grete's injuries included burns around her ears and nose, red, blurry eyes with reduced tear production, and sliced-off pads on three of her paws. We are proud to say that as of TODAY, Grete no longer needs daily visits to Westgate, has graduated from the protective wrappings on her feet, and is truly returning to her normal self! She still has medication for her eyes and burns, but all-in-all, she is doing amazingly well. She is a wonder dog.

We are so grateful for the excellent care and generosity from Westgate Pet Clinic. They have adopted Grete as their own wonder dog and provided extra special care, thereby taking care of all of us. We also appreciate others who have reached out to help Grete with her recovery, including Karen, who tracked us down through Fox9 news to donate one of her handmade dog beds, and friends of SideWalkDog.com who have donated food and a kennel. The media continues to express interest in Grete's story as well.

I have an image in my head of Grete emerging from the smoke and fire with a red cape on, bravely racing to safety. If there are any witnesses out there that can help crystalize this picture for me, I'd love to hear from you!